Stocks Manage Modest Gains Amid Improving Jobs, Greece

It wasn’t pretty but stocks eked out small gains on Friday, capping a volatile week in which the market recovered from its biggest loss of the year.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 14 points, or 0.1%, to 12922, but finished the week down 0.4%, its second straight weekly decline. The S&P 500 advanced 5 points, or 0.4%, to 1371, its third highest closing value of the year. The tech-heavy Nasdaq Comp was once again the big winner, rising 18 points, or 0.6%, to 2988 and closing the week up 0.4%.

February jobs report early this morning set the tone for a modest rise. But much of the rally wilted after ISDA declared Greece a “credit event” following the completion of the debt swap deal. ISDA ruled payouts will be triggered on $3.2 billion of credit default swaps tied to Greek debt.

Nine of the 10 sectors in the S7P 500 rose on Friday, led by financial and consumer discretionary stocks. J.P. Morgan chase advanced 1.% and Travelers increased 0.9%. Utilities were the S&P 500′s lone declining sector.

Nevertheless, the bulls are taking comfort that stocks were able to recover from the drubbing suffered early in the week. Stocks notched their biggest decline on Tuesday, with the Dow shedding more than 200 points. But it only took two days for the market to recover those losses and edge higher.

“We must be alert to the possibility that the pullback is over based on the rapid snapback,” says Mark Arbeter, chief technical strategist at S&P Capital IQ.

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